Analytical solution of the direct problem of ellipsometry for some profiles of optical constants of inhomogeneous layers

Abstract

Differential equations that describe the reflection of polarized light from an optically inhomogeneous medium are considered. In the approximation of small variations of the refractive index, analytical expressions for the reflection coefficients are obtained for both types of polarization for the exponential and harmonic profiles of the optical constants. The accuracy of the obtained expressions is estimated by numerical simulation. It is found that analytical formulas describe well the behavior of the ellipsometric parameters of periodic structures based on Hg_1–xCd_xTe with a sinusoidal profile of the refractive index.